


made manifest

by perlaret



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015), Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: F/M, Huddling For Warmth, Stranded, Touch-Starved
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-25
Updated: 2017-08-25
Packaged: 2018-12-18 22:18:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,099
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11883993
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/perlaret/pseuds/perlaret
Summary: The loneliness is something he would never forget.





	made manifest

**Author's Note:**

  * For [AceQueenKing](https://archiveofourown.org/users/AceQueenKing/gifts).



Once, Finn had dreamed of disappearing. His goal had been a far, distant planet, light years away from galactic conflict, where his existence could escape the notice of anyone whose sights were set higher than his own. Now, in the shadow of the Falcon’s fractured hull, that idea seemed frailer. 

And colder, he thought, breathing out. His breath was a pale cloud before him as Finn peered through the hole of torn metal. Paler still was the ice that surrounded them, coating the ground outside in a frosty white. He couldn’t see far; the world beyond their ship was largely obscured by a hazy fog. Finn didn’t care for it. It brought to mind all manner of dangers and creatures that could be out there, unseen and unexpected. If the First Order had given him anything it had given Finn a healthy sense of the galaxy’s perils. But at too high a cost.

On the upside, the air was breathable. Finn counted that for something. And, more importantly, he wasn’t alone. 

That in mind, he carried out his task, heaving up the panel of scrap metal he’d located below deck, in the cargo holds. It was heavy and solid, but big enough. It would service to keep out the weather, though perhaps not the vacuum of space. But that was not yet the most immediate worry. 

Satisfied, he turned within, rounding past the cockpit entryway to the small room where his companion worked.

“Any luck?” he asked.

Rey crouched in the small space between a stack of crates and the ship’s life support system bank, up to her elbows in the tangle of wires and components that eluded Finn entirely.

“It doesn’t feel any warmer,” she said, terse in the way she was when she was focused. 

“I found something to help with that,” Finn said. “We can seal up the hole, but it will take two sets of hands.”

“Give me a minute,” Rey said, and then did something that made the lights flicker ominously. 

“Um,” Finn said. It was drowned out by an ominous clank. Rey hissed in annoyance. Her cheeks were flushed red with the cold above the high collar of the jacket Finn had shed on her behalf. If her fingers were half as numb as his were, he couldn’t imagine how she was manipulating the delicate contraptions before her, except that it was Rey and she was ever undaunted.

“Everything here is fine,” she said, rocking back on her heels. She gazed distantly into the module before her, fingers tapping together as her mind processed the machine’s many parts. “Maybe it’s not getting power from the generator.”

“Rey,” Finn prompted. She looked over her shoulder at him, brow furrowed still in thought. “If we get the temperature regulation systems back online but still have a hole in the side of our ship, it’s going to just waste power. Right?”

She factored that into her equations in record time, then leapt to her feet. “Good point. Let’s do it,” she said.

Drilling and welding were not familiar skills to Finn, but he was a fast learner, and Rey’s instructions were clearer than they might have been once, the first time they’d fixed this ship together. The heat from the blowtorch was welcome against his face, making sweat accumulate beneath the goggles he wore, a dramatic contrast to the chill that clung to his back. 

“I think she’s getting easier to fix,” Finn said when they were done, shifting away from the wall, rolling his shoulders. They were tight, his muscles still regaining their own strength. “Or maybe I’m just getting used to doing the fixing.”

Rey breathed a small, tired laugh, removing the goggles from her face to the crown of her head. “She needs a lot of love. But I think I’m getting to know her quirks pretty well.” A moment later a shadow crossed her face, the smile fading. “...It would be nice if Chewie were here though.”

She didn’t to say aloud who else’s presence was missed, Finn thought, feeling his heart sink like a stone in his chest. It was instinctual to reach for her. Rey’s hands met his halfway – he clasped them, pressing what warmth he could muster into the tips of her fingers.

“Yeah,” he said softly. “It would.”

There was something far off and distant in her expression that called to him and required a response. The Resistance and everything else that had come since their paths stumbled together kept them endlessly busy, sometimes Finn didn’t have enough energy at the end of the day when he fell into his cot to even dream. But the loneliness was something he would never forget.

“Hey, want to take a break?” he suggested, tilting his head. “I’m kind of cold, and last I checked, the rations on board weren’t that hard up.”

“It will only get colder,” Rey said, but there was no bite to it. Her grip tightened in his, and they stepped around the remnants of their work. They bypassed the galley altogether, heading into the ship’s communal space, to the rounded seating area. Finn bumped his knee on the dejarik table as he squeezed in first at her prompting.

“Want to play?” he asked dubiously, eyeballing the strangely checkered disc. He had yet to fully grasp the rules, but then, he’d only had lessons from a Wookiee. The best winning strategy in that case always seemed, in Finn’s opinion, to not win.

Rey seemed amused. “Not now,” she said, and carefully tucked herself in next to him. 

Finn realized her intent with a lurch of gratitude. 

“Good plan,” he said, and lifted his arm in a careful offer. Rey took it, wisps of loose hair falling over her shoulder as she scooted in closer, her torso pressed up beside his. It was more than body heat that suffused Finn with warmth as she rested her temple against his collar. He didn’t have words for all that she meant to him. It didn’t matter where in the galaxy he had to go, with Rey, there was a security and purpose he’d never before thought possible.

“All good?” Finn asked, resting his cheek atop her head.

“Mm,” Rey murmured, wiggling her fingers into the space between them. She laughed a little when Finn jumped at the sensation, but quickly stilled the movement. “Sorry. Didn’t mean that. But… It’s fine. We’ll fix it and go. Just– in a minute.”

Finn settled, nodding against her hair. There seemed no better place to be than here. 

“Yeah," he said. No hurry yet.”

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the Finn x Rey Exchange 2017. Thanks to AceQueenKing for some wonderful prompts, they were all amazing and so hard to pick from. I hope you enjoyed!


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